Trump Stops Military Aid, Ukraine Continues To Be Hit By Russian Missiles

The impact of the Russian attack on Ukraine/PHOTO via X @ZelenskyyUa

JAKARTA Russian troops damaged Ukraine's energy and gas infrastructure in their first major missile attack since the US stopped sharing intelligence information with Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is trying to increase Western support for his country after Donald Trump's diplomatic changes to Moscow, calling for a ceasefire that includes air and sea, although not ground forces.

"The first step to build true peace is to force this only source of war, Russia, to stop such attacks," Zelenskyy said on the messaging app Telegram, responding to last night's missile strike.

The Ukrainian air force said Russia fired a salvo of 67 missiles and 194 drones in an attack overnight.

Ukraine shot down 34 missiles and 100 drones.

Regional officials from the northeastern Kharkiv city to the western city of Ternopil reported damage to energy and other infrastructure.

Eight people were injured in Kharkiv and two more, including a child, were injured in the Poltava.

"Russia continues to carry out energy terror," said Energy Minister German Galuschenko.

"Energy and gas infrastructure in various regions of Ukraine has again become the target of massive missile and drone attacks," he continued.

Russia is targeting Ukrainian cities that are far from the frontline every night by drone, but Friday's attack is the first large-scale attack since the suspension of US military and intelligence aid this week.

Russia has hit Ukraine's electric sector with missiles and drones during the war, crippling about half of the national power generation capacity and forcing rotating outages at various points in the war.

This year Russia is more focused on infrastructure for natural gas, which is used for heating and cooking as well as by industrial companies.

"The production facilities that ensure gas production are damaged. Fortunately, there were no casualties," said energy company Naftogaz.

Ukraine's largest private energy company, DTEK, has stopped production of gas at its facilities in the central Poltava region after experiencing significant damage to Friday's attack, he said.

The temporary suspension of US military and intelligence assistance could weaken Ukraine's air defenses as the country lacks advanced missiles and struggles to track attacks effectively, military analysts said.